Since returning to Toronto, Jakob Poeltl has been an impactful addition to the Raptors. In only six games, Poeltl has begun to address some of the problems that have plagued the team this season, including a lack of efficient scoring and rim protection.
The Austrian big man has boosted their defensive rating while also being a force on the offensive end, posting a terrific 75.5 eFG%. Poeltl gives the Raptors some much-needed versatility on both sides of the ball, which has the added benefit of freeing up his teammates to do the things at which they’re most effective.
The Poeltl move has turned him into a supercharger that is making the entire Toronto engine run smoother. The rest of the team has been playing much better basketball in the last few days. Here are three Raptors players who have most benefitted from Poeltl’s presence in the lineup.
3 Toronto Raptors who have benefitted from Jakob Poeltl.
Pascal Siakam
The Raptors are a better team with Siakam on the court, plain and simple. They score more points and shoot the ball more efficiently from every spot on the floor. He’s the oil that keeps their offensive motor running.
However, they are also overly reliant on his production. Without Pascal on the court, the Raptors would rank last in the NBA in eFG% by a substantial margin. The on-off numbers are staggering.
As such, Nick Nurse has been forced to keep him on the court for long stretches, and his numbers have dipped as a result. Since seeing a minutes increase in mid-December, Siakam has suffered concurrent drops in both scoring average and shooting efficiency. Simply put, he looks gassed.
The Raptors can’t rely on Pascal to carry the entire offense, especially when it’s obviously hurting his production. Fortunately, the acquisition of Poeltl has eased some of the offensive burdens on the All-Star forward. Poeltl’s offensive arsenal doesn’t feature the same array of spin moves, pirouettes, and do-si-do’s that Pascal has so masterfully refined over the years.
On the contrary, he is a decidedly un-flashy player, but nonetheless incredibly effective at what he does. A 77% shooter at the rim, Poeltl gives the Raptors a source of efficient offense on the interior, something they have lacked all season. He’s also a skilled offensive rebounder, pulling down the fourth-most per game in the NBA.
Jakob Poeltl has taken some of Pascal Siakam’s offensive burden.
Scoring efficiency is already a plus on a team that has long thirsted for it, but Poeltl also impacts the game in other ways. His deft passing and quick decision-making have allowed the Raptors to diversify their offensive attack. Poeltl has shown great potential as a release valve in short-roll situations like this one, where the Magic choose to blitz Pascal outside the three-point arc.
Poeltl, aware of the Raptors’ man advantage, makes himself available for the pass. He attacks immediately, seeing the lane and taking it to the rack for two points.
He’s equally capable as a passer. Nick Nurse has even started to run some actions that capitalize on Poeltl’s pinpoint playmaking, including a series of backdoor plays that get Siakam open looks at the basket.
Too often this season, the Raptors have relied on the predictable trope of Siakam iso-ball. As skilled a player as he is, it’s simply not a sustainable strategy. As the Raptors try to make a playoff push, Poeltl’s mix of scoring and playmaking should add new dimensions to the Raptors’ offensive attack while helping to shoulder some of Siakam’s offensive burden.
Scottie Barnes
In the absence of a true big, many of the big-adjacent responsibilities on the Raptors this season have fallen to Scottie Barnes. Defensively, the sophomore forward has been asked to defend opposing bigs on the low block, and has struggled to hold his own.
It’s not his fault; he simply doesn’t have the needed size or strength. This is an unfortunate reality of the “Vision 6-9” philosophy; some guys are going to have to play out of position. Truthfully, Scottie belongs on the perimeter, where he thrives as an off-ball pest and overall chaos-bringer.
That’s why Poeltl’s presence has been such a boon for Barnes on the defensive end. The former Spur is an obvious upgrade as a post defender, having the requisite size and strength to hang with the league’s bigs. Poeltl’s presence as a rim protector also enhances the pesky defense that the Raptors want to play, allowing them to be more aggressive in passing and driving lanes.
This should benefit Barnes in particular, who thrives as an off-ball defender, roaming the perimeter and generally wreaking havoc on the opponent. Barnes does struggle to contain opposing guards at the point of attack, but this deficiency may not be quite as tangible with Poeltl there to clean up his mess at the back end.
Jakob Poeltl’s presence allows Scottie to play more aggressively.
Offensively, it has been much the same story. Scottie has been asked to fulfill many big-like responsibilities, such as setting high ball screens for the Raptors’ stars. As strong as he is, he struggles to hold the screens through contact, thus taking away any advantage the Raptors would have gained.
Poeltl is an automatic upgrade in this department, his strong lower body and thick frame creating extra space for the ballhandler to turn the corner.
Poeltl also gives the Raptors a Barnes-like floor general who can impact the game with his passing. In some ways, Poeltl is even an upgrade in this department; a more seasoned NBA player, Poeltl is more judicious with his decision-making.
His passes are carefully calculated, while Scottie’s often tend to be impulsive and overly audacious. This is not to say that Barnes isn’t a talented playmaker; he absolutely is, but sometimes making the right pass is better than making the flashy one.
Much like Barnes, Poeltl has incredible court awareness and a knack for finding his teammates in the right spot. Unlike Scottie, Poeltl has the self-discipline to look off the pass if it’s not quite there.
At this point in Barnes’ sterling career, we still can’t expect him to do it all. He’s still a young player with specific strengths and glaring weaknesses. Having Poeltl on the floor will allow Scottie to stick to his strengths on both ends of the ball.
Precious Achiuwa
Precious is a bit of a wild card on this Raptors team. Defensively, his athletic talents really help fuel their motor. He has great timing when it comes to blocking shots, and he moves his feet well for a bigger guy. He is an absolute force on the defensive end of the ball, and the Raptors rely on him as a crucial part of their bench unit.
Offensively, though, Achiuwa tends to bite off more than he can chew. He has traditionally been at his best with the ball in rotation, taking advantage of reeling defenses by attacking the paint or shooting the three.
Despite the relative success he has enjoyed in these areas, Precious still has a tendency to call his own number, trying to isolate his man off the dribble instead of keeping the ball moving.
Achiuwa isolations have been some of the Raptors’ most inefficient offense this season, scoring a meager 0.61 points per possession in these situations. Precious ranks in the seventh percentile leaguewide in isolation efficiency.
Jakob Poeltl’s passing has helped Precious Achiuwa get looks at the rim.
At this point in his young career, Achiuwa doesn’t have the offensive skill to beat his defender one-on-one consistently. What he does have is a physically imposing body that is tough for opponents to stop when driving in space toward the basket.
Having a skilled passer like Poeltl should allow the Raptors to get the ball to Achiuwa where he is most effective, cutting toward the basket with a head of steam. We’ve already seen this duo at work. In this play, Poeltl deftly navigates the short roll, attacking the basket and forcing the defense to commit. Banchero steps in to stop the ball, and Poeltl drops the ball off to Achiuwa for the backdoor dunk.
If these two can develop some synergy, we can look forward to seeing more connections between these two guys going forward.